Country Analysis Brief Overview

Libya is a member of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, the holder of Africa's largest proved crude oil reserves, and an important contributor to the global supply of light, sweet crude oil.

The country's National Oil Corporation (NOC) has emphasized the need to apply enhanced oil recovery techniques to increase crude oil production at maturing oil fields. Before the 2011 civil war, the NOC claimed that capacity additions of around 775,000 bbl/d were possible from existing oil fields.

Libya's oil production was disrupted for most of 2011 because of the civil war, but it recovered relatively quickly following the cessation of most hostilities by the autumn of that year. The country's oil sector was crippled again in mid-2013 as widespread protests led to a sharp deterioration of the security environment at oil facilities and the closure of loading ports, oil fields, and pipelines. Most loading ports have since re-opened, but sporadic protests continue to affect oil production.

Libya typically exports most of its crude oil (70% to 80%) to European countries, with Italy being the leading recipient. The United States resumed importing crude oil from Libya in 2004 after sanctions were removed, although the amount imported typically is small.

As with its oil sector, Libya's natural gas industry recovered in 2012, but production still remained below the pre-war level. Libya's rank as a producer and reserve holder is less significant for natural gas than it is for oil. About half of its natural gas production is exported to Italy via the Greenstream pipeline.

Libya's natural gas production and exports increased considerably after 2003 with the development of the Western Libya Gas Project and with the opening of the Greenstream pipeline to Italy. Italy is currently the sole recipient of Libya's natural gas exports.

In 1971, Libya became the third country in the world, after Algeria and the United States (Alaska), to begin exporting liquefied natural gas (LNG). In the past, the country exported a small amount of LNG to Spain. However, the LNG plant was damaged during the 2011 civil war, and Libya has not exported LNG since early 2011.

Electricity generation has more than doubled from 2000 to 2010. Despite growth in electricity generation and a high electrification rate, the country suffers from regular power outages. Libya's oil sector has also been affected by power supply issues, which have compromised production at some of the country's largest oil fields.